Wool 2030 - Australian Wool: The World’s Premium Sustainable Fibre

A new 10-year plan for Australian woolgrowers was released in mid-December 2020. “Wool 2030 - Australian Wool: The World’s Premium Sustainable Fibre” is the result of concerted collaboration across the industry. More than 800 woolgrowers helped write the report that was overseen by AWI’s Wool Consultation Group (WCG) and the Wool Industry Consultative Panel (WICP).

The strategy is underpinned by five pillars:

• Caring for our animals and the environment
• Marketing the world’s most desirable fibre
• Communicating with our customers
• Transforming our production systems through innovation
• Fostering a prosperous wool growing community.

WICP Chairman Lyndsey Douglas is confident the industry has a bright future. “We know that positioning wool as a rewarding, profitable land-use choice to the next generation landholder is core to meeting our growth targets,” Ms Douglas said. “A deep desire to meet the expectations of consumers worldwide is reflected in the Wool 2030 tagline: the world’s premium sustainable fibre”.

Key themes from the strategy include:

• The need for better communication and understanding along the wool pipeline.
• More growers need to know what products their wool goes into, and what customers are seeking.
• Growers can provide customers with more information about their product, especially concerning its provenance
• Sustainability is a key attribute sought by today’s consumer, and Australian wool will continue to be promoted for its ‘natural’ advantages of being renewable, recyclable and biodegradable
• Improved animal welfare will be an ongoing focus
• The Merino ewe will continue to be the cornerstone of the Australian flock
• The harnessing of new technology promises on-farm efficiencies and solutions to longstanding challenges such as wool harvesting and parasite control
• People are also a focus of the plan, which envisions a united, cohesive industry that attracts younger generations.

It is proposed that oversight of the plan will be provided by Wool 2030 Steering Group comprising an independent chair, and representatives of national woolgrower and stud breeder organisations plus members from all sectors of the wool pipeline.

Australian Wool Innovation Chief Executive Stuart McCullough welcomed the release of the plan and thanked everyone involved in shaping it. “Wool 2030 provides the wool industry with a strong vision over the next 10 years,” Mr McCullough said. “There is a lot of work to be done now to implement the plan, but also a lot of goodwill to do so, and AWI looks forward to aligning our strategic intent with this wool industry plan going forward.”

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